Craig’s voicemail for attorney shows: He un-resigned before he resigned!

posted at 8:52 am on September 5, 2007 by Allahpundit

The plot thickenscongeals. According to Roll Call, Craiggers left a message for his lawyer, Billy Martin, right before Saturday’s resignation presser saying that he’d spoken to Specter and was going to announce merely his intent to resign, thereby leaving himself the possibility of changing his mind. Wait — how’d Roll Call get hold of it, then? Ah, because Craiggers dialed the wrong number and left it on someone else’s voicemail machine. Or so you might believe, if you’re a complete imbecile. Listen here.

“Yes, Billy, this is Larry Craig calling. You can reach me on my cell. Arlen Specter is now willing to come out in my defense, arguing that it appears by all that he knows that I have been railroaded and all that.

“Having all of that, we have reshaped my statement a little bit to say it is my intent to resign on Sept. 30. I think it is important for you to make as bold a statement as you are comfortable with this afternoon, and I would hope you could make it in front of the cameras.

“I think it would help drive the story that I’m willing to fight, that I’ve got quality people out there fighting in my defense, and that this thing could take a new turn or a new shape, it has that potential. Anyway, give me a buzz or give Mike a buzz on that. We’re headed to my press conference now.

“Thank you. Bye.”

Dan Riehl seems to think, as I do, that Craig didn’t misdial at all and that the audio came from Martin’s office. Where we differ is why: Dan thinks someone in the GOP got Martin or one of his staffers to torpedo Craig’s credibility by putting this out there, which if true would be grossly unethical and potentially ruinous for Martin’s practice once word gets around that his clients can’t trust him. Rather, I think he put it out there because he thinks it helps Craig by showing that he didn’t really flip flop on the resignation, that he meant all along to specify that he only intended to resign and might change his mind. Although in that case, why didn’t Craig just say that at the presser?

Exit question: What’s the deal? Is Craig simply this inept? All theories are welcome.

Exit question: What’s the deal? Is Craig simply this inept? All theories are welcome.

I know that is the story, but I don’t like the way you are framing this AP. All this is doing is shifting the focus off his support for the shamnesty bill. As far as conservative ideals are concerned, that is more important than gay sex among consenting adults in bathrooms. Here in Idaho we NEED this guy out. I daresay the conservative cause in this country needs this guy gone.

we have reshaped my statement a little bit to say it is my intent to resign on Sept. 30.

Which is exactly the point that Specter made, to the hoots and catcalls of most of us here at Hot Air.

It’s reasonable enough to picture Craig grasping at the hope that the Republican Party will circle the wagons around him, like the Democrats would do if he had been one of theirs. He fails to realize, however, that the Republican base is not moved by attempts to drape wrongdoers in the mantle of victimhood.

I’m a little torn on this one. I’m all for kicking out any public official caught breaking the law (beyond parking and speeding type violations). But I don’t see how Craig broke any laws here. I’m a bit worried if people can be arrested now for touching feet under a bathroom stall. If he had been caught actually doing the nasty in public, that would be different. But he was just caught trying to maybe break the law, but not yet having broken it. I’m also in favor of “cleaning house” in the GOP and getting all the Foley-type perverts out of the way so that we can get back to winning elections (and to protect the innocent targets of such predators, of course). But again, Craig doesn’t exactly fall into that category since he was trolling for consenting adults (allegedly).

But, it doesn’t really matter what I think. The damage is done, and the public associates Craig (and consequently the GOP) with some perverted act in a public restroom. I do think he needs to get out of the way now. He’s just handing the media the opportunity to smear the entire party with all this, and the longer he drags it out, the worse it gets.

I do regret that we Republicans let Newt Gingrich go too easily over ethics questions. Without him, the Conservative Revolution of 94 fell apart very quickly. We’re still paying the price for losing the momentum and unity that Newt seems to have almost singlehandedly inspired. Clearly Craig is not in that category, and we can do without him. But we do need to be selective about tossing some of these guys out for their “indiscretions.” If no law is broken and their actions are not harming other individuals, the nation, or their constituents’ interests, I think they’re justified in staying where they are until their constituents can decide in the next election if they want to keep them or not.

Again, if an elected official breaks a law or endangers others, he or she should resign immediately, and all pressure should be applied by the party to achieve that end. But that’s not the case with Craig–the seeming intention to try to break a law is not the same as being caught actually breaking a law. The cop’s case is really weak, and Craig should not have pleaded guilty or resigned. But now the damage is done, the case is festering in the media, and Craig has to follow through and get out of the way.

“I intend” to do it means that “I don’t intend” to do it? And this is how the guy tries to prove that he’s NOT a flake?

I don’t care whether he’s gay or not. Like most people who get “outed”, a weird little fetish is the LEAST of his problems. Why is there always so much weird baggage that goes along with homosexuality? I don’t think it’s a coincidence that’s the only fetish that liberals make such a big deal out of. Those two derangements seem to have an awful lot in common.

The transcript gives me the feeling that the senator is probably innocent, but took the guilty plea and payed a fine to quickly get the ordeal behind him. The actions that he takes might be ones which he believes will capture the least media attention and save his political career. Too bad they don’t work.

If the Republican leadership have any sense they would quit being defensive and purge their ranks. By doing so they may lose a few seats but will in the long run lose less than the alternative. A purge even if it doesn’t get everyone that fact it was done will throw any future blame off the party at least.

If they don’t we will be dealing with this BS Foley, Graig, ect……trickling out non-stop until 08′. The Dems are going to use their proxies to slander the Republican party as a whole via a few bad apples hit on one at a time spread out like they did in the run up to 06′. Why else is many of these stories old months old?

Better to take one heavy hit now and recover for the big fight in 08′ than to take a stream of jabs all the way to 08′ were the party will be so punch drunk it wont even be a fight.